Honda President Says Big Engines Are Dead. Seriously?
While Honda makes everything from power tools to robots to mini-jets, an argument could be made that Honda is an engine company. Every major product line features some sort of fossil-fuel powered motor, and their worldwide success would seem to suggest that Honda knows a thing or two about building a great engine.
However, when the President of Honda Motors, Takanobu Ito, says that the era of big powerful engines is dead, his understanding of the US auto market should be called into question. Here’s the exact quote: Read more…
Survey – Can Toyota Build A Great Sports Car Again?
Remember when Toyota had a sports car? When I say “Toyota,” by the way, I don’t mean the entire company that encompasses Scion and Lexus. I mean Toyota – the company that used to offer the unbelievable Supra. Somehow in the last 4 years Toyota completely stopped making sports coupes. Now, they’re talking about bringing back the Celica.
However, with a long list of recent sports coupe failures, does Toyota still know how to make a sports car? Read more…
Kiwi PLX Gas Saver – Boost Your Truck’s Gas Mileage
Earlier this week we talked about winter gas mileage and why the cold weather hurts your MPGs. Today, we’re talking about a series of electronics called the Kiwi PLX Gas Savers.
Fact: In-dash fuel meters with instant gas mileage readings have been shown to improve gas mileage.
Oddly enough, most hybrid vehicles (with their super-efficient powertrains) have in-dash fuel economy displays. Most pickup trucks (with their super-inefficient powertrains) don
Why Cold Weather Hurts Your Truck’s Gas Mileage
It’s that time of year again – colder temperatures are coming. During the winter time, most truck owners notice a 5-10% drop in fuel economy. Since truck fuel economy is already pretty low, going from 16 MPG to a little better than 14 MPG means an extra $25 to $50 in extra gas every month…and most truck owners notice that right away.
It’s frustrating, but it’s something most truck owners have learned to live with. However – there are some things you can do about lower gas mileage in cold weather. First, though, we have to know why it happens. Read more…
10 Most Outrageous Truck Quality Problems Of The Last Decade
All of the recent and damning evidence uncovered in the first-gen Tundra frame rust investigation has been discouraging. How could Toyota and the frame supplier Dana underestimated the potential for rust so profoundly? Why has Toyota let this issue go so far? Clearly, a critical error in quality has been made. Toyota’s image will depend on how they take care of the problem.
However, no matter what you may think about the Toyota Tundra frame rust issue (we think it stinks), this problem is fairly comparable to problems that other truck manufacturers have had in the last decade.